There has been significant progress in the production of high-intensity optical energy, for example in the area of laser spark plugs or cutting technology and laser-based missile defense. However, there has been little effort to protect users of such systems from accidental exposure to such high-intensity optical energy that may blind or otherwise severely injure anyone exposed to such optical energy without proper protection.
Typically, high-intensity optical energy systems use a simple case switch, which is a simple electrical switch that is opened or closed when a casing is opened. However, in some systems it may be difficult or impractical to have a case switch to indicate when an outer casing is removed. For example, for laser spark plugs, providing a casing around each plug would be impractical and lead to spacing issues, heat issues etc. Furthermore, such a sensor does little to follow the path of optical energy from the source. For example, unlike electricity, simple cuts in an optical fiber covering may do more than just cause disconnections or electrical shorts, but may leak dangerous amounts of high-intensity optical energy. Such high-intensity leaks may be particularly dangerous as they may be undetectable in current designs until damage or injury occurs.